The store was bigger than he expected. Shelves lined the aisles with snacks, groceries, toiletries, bottled water, and household items, but he had never been there before and did not know where anything was.
That was when he saw her.
A young woman in a store uniform walked past him holding a bottle of water. Her name tag read Azuka, and her face looked tight and annoyed, like someone who had already decided the whole day was beneath her.
Chibuike stepped a little closer, careful to keep his voice polite.
“Hello, excuse me,” he said.
Azuka kept walking like she had not heard him.
Chibuike blinked in surprise. Maybe she really didn’t hear me, he thought, so he walked a little faster and tried again.
“Excuse me, miss,” he said. “Please, I just wanted to ask—”
Still, she ignored him completely.
A few customers nearby started watching. Chibuike felt the awkwardness rising around him, but he stayed calm and reached out gently, touching her shoulder just enough to get her attention.
“Beautiful lady,” he said respectfully. “I was calling you. Did you not hear me? I only wanted to ask where I could find—”
Before he could finish, Azuka spun around sharply.
Then she poured the entire bottle of water straight onto his face.
The store went silent.
